A Wave of fusion jazz

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A Wave of fusion jazz

The Wave plays weekly at Chunnyun Dongando, a Daehangno jazz bar where even the wait staff can be found bopping to the music.
The experience of listening to this five-piece band is like touching an electric outlet: instant frizz.
The music that the Wave creates is charged: It could be youth; the members are in their 20s. It could be testosterone; all the members are men. It could be talent.
It’s probably all three, mixed with good rapport. Even though the jazz market in Korea is small, this band has managed to put out four albums. The group celebrated the release of its latest CD, “The Style,” with a party in January.
This week’s concerts, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Polymedia Theater in Daehangno, are encore events, inspired by intense fan demand on the group’s Internet site (ilovewave.co.kr).
The Wave performs original compositions and also interprets popular songs. The mixture of saxophone (Kim Yong-su), keyboard (Park Ji-un), electric guitar (Han Hyun-chang), electric bass (Choi Hun) and drums (Park Chul-wu) makes for some funky tunes.
Since the Wave got together in 1998, they’ve been playing what they call fusion jazz. Over the years, some members have changed, but the vision has remained constant.
The group will put a ska touch to a jazz song, or almost seamlessly join a jazz song with a classic rock ’n’ roll composition.
In a sense, their music is considered to be “young.” But considering their claim to the title as the future of jazz in Korea, young is a good place to be.


by Joe Yong-hee

Tickets cost 20,000 to 25,000 won ($16.50-$20.50). For more information, call (02) 1588-7890.
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